Chocolatiers

Review: Trust Me by Laura Florand

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Title: Trust Me (Paris Hearts #3)
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemporary romance 
Release Date: 4 Apr 2017

Author's links:
Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
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My rating: 4.5 Stars

Blurb

She's nobody's damsel in distress...
Top Parisian pastry chef Lina Farah is used to fighting for her success. But when a violent attack shatters her security, she needs a new tactic to battle her dragons. What better way to banish the monsters under her bed than by inviting a sexy SEAL to tangle the sheets? 

He's a professional dragon slayer...
Elite operative Jake Adams has never stayed in one place long enough to form a lasting relationship. Lina’s fire and beauty tempt him to give her the hot affair she craves. But her spirit and courage make him long for more. Can he convince a woman seeking forgetfulness to dream of ever after...with him?

Review

This is the third book in the Paris Nights series about three female chefs in Paris and even though I really enjoyed the previous two, this is definitely my favourite. It can be read as a standalone but I recommend reading at least the previous one where all the action happens that leads to Lina and Jake acting the way they do in Trust Me. 

I love Laura Florand's stories in general and this is no exception. It's compelling, beautifully written, emotional and very powerful and like most of her recent writing, highly topical. 

Lina is an amazing character. She is a top pastry chef, she is Muslim, of Algerian origin. She used to be and brave and strong, boldly tackling any obstacle in her way. Now she is dealing with the aftermath of a violent attack in the best way she can - struggling with nightmares, fear, insecurity, guilt. And a growing attraction to Jake. Who is not just a source of strength and safety and calmness but also completely enamoured with her. 

He is a special ops guy, one who is used to danger and one-night stands. And suddenly he wants more with Lina, he wants the flirting and the dating and the getting to know each other and most importantly he wants a future with her. And she proposed no-strings-attached sex, as a way for her to move on from the attack, to bring back her sense of enjoyment of life, and faith in the future. 

The progress of their relationship was just deliciously presented. As can be expected a lot of food was involved and it was just the sweetest. His special ops buddies provided a much needed comic relief and I absolutely adored them all. Though Mark definitely stood out for me, I mean her chooses Camus and Kafka for their book club, how can I not love him. I can't wait for him to get his own book. 

Family and friends got involved in Lina and Jake coming together and it was both endearing and frustrating. Still, they are at the centre of the story and the author delves deep into their souls and brings their most sacred fears and dreams and hopes to the fore, makes them open up to each other and reclaim their lives in a most emphatic and profound way. 

It's such a powerful romance, tender but also emphasizing the strength of the individual, the confidence, the will to live and not give up. It's not about finding someone to fix you, but about finding someone to help you discover your inner strength to fix yourself, to believe in yourself.

The writing is mesmerising and I especially love how the author always brings some classical fairytales in her stories. And here the references to Camus and Kafka with Harry Potter in between totally made my day. 

It's one the best books of Laura Florand that I have read, and have to admit that I have read and loved almost everything she has written. I can't recommend this book highly enough. Anyone who enjoys a masterfully written, emotionally charged contemporary romance needs to read this.

Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / Kobo / iTunes

Contemporary Romance

Review: A Crown of Bitter Orange by Laura Florand

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Title: A Crown of Bitter Orange (La Vie en Roses #3)
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemproary romance
Release Date: 24 Jan 2017

Author's links:
Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
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My rating: 4 Stars


Blurb

Childhood friends. 
Tristan Rosier might have asked Malorie Monsard to marry him when he was five years old, but things had only gone downhill from there. She’d spent the rest of their lives ignoring him, abandoning him, and destroying his perfumes. Now she was back, to wreak who knew what havoc on his life.

Lifelong enemies. 
Tristan might choose to dismiss the generations-long enmity between their two families, but Malorie didn’t have that privilege. Like all the other privileges wealthy, gorgeous Tristan took for granted that she couldn’t. But if she was going to restore her family company to glory, she might just need his help.

Or the perfect match? 
They’d known each other all their lives. Could these childhood friends and lifelong enemies ever uncross their stars and find happily ever after?

Review

Laura Florand is one of my favourite authors of contemporary romance. This the third book in her series set in the French province telling the story of a family of rose farmers and perfume makers.

The story of Tristan and Malorie is marked the usual intensity and deep sensuality. like most of the author's books this is a very character-focused story. Tristan, unlike most of her heroes appears to be more open, jovial, less closed off than his cousins but we quickly see this is only on the surface. His carefree and easy going manner is in reality a mask, a mechanism he uses to cope with his ADHD. His outward appearance and behaviour is deceptive and way too often people form the wrong opinion of him, yet he can't really correct this impression of himself if he wants to be able to help the people he cares about. When it comes to the things and people he cares the most about he becomes shy and tongue-tied.

It's a friends-to-lovers romance where Tristan and Malorie have known each other all their lives and have been attracted to one another for almost as long. Yet in their eyes there are too many obstacles before them to come together.

I liked how their relationship developed, how the author managed to make their differences so very clear. The reader can see how Tristan fails to understand Malorie's fears,  it's oh so easy to misinterpret things and so difficult to see them from the other person's perfectible. Same holds true for her. She couldn't imagine how he felt, what was going on in his mind. Their different situations in life, opposite family relations and social status were a big obstacle before them. And it's not easy to talk about things like that, even more so with someone whom you love desperately and would do anything for your affections to be returned.

It's uncanny how topical the books in the series have become today - the Rosier family history as part of the French Resistance during WWII brings to the fore the topics of the past and how it shapes our present, the importance of family and strong support system, the whole aspect of the fight between good and evil and how it never really ends. 

A Crown of Bitter orange is a wonderful contemporary romance with some hidden depths and relevance to the current political turmoil all over the world. It's a bit nostalgic, a lot romantic, but also playful and fun. 

Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / Kobo / iBooks

Chocolatiers

Review: Chase Me by Laura Florand

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Title: Chase Me (Paris Hearts #2)
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemporary romance, chefs, Paris
Release Date: 5 April 2016

Author's links:
Add on Goodreads

My rating: 4 Stars


Synopsis


A Michelin two-star chef at twenty-eight, Violette Lenoir could handle anything, including a cocky burglar who broke into her restaurant in the middle of the night.

Or so she thought.

Elite counterterrorist operative Chase “Smith” had been through things that made Hell Week look easy. But nothing had prepared him for a leather-clad blonde who held him at bay at knifepoint and dared him to take her on.

Now if only saving the world didn’t require he ruin her life.

Two people who thought they could handle anything now have to take on each other. 

It's a battle neither one expected. But with their futures on the line, they have nothing to lose...but their hearts.

Review 


This is the second book in the Paris Hearts series which feature women chefs. Similar to the first book here our heroine also falls for a military-type guy but unlike previous books by Ms Florand, here things between them were both more suspenseful and more hilarious. 

I really like Ms Florand's writing, it's always sensual, very emotional, focused a lot on the inner world of the characters and their difficulties in communicating/expressing their innermost desires and fears. This story was no exception and while Violette was more or less a typical Florand heroine (she reminded me of her heroes, actually - feisty and determined, focused on her profession, yet fragile and uncertain her personal life), Chase was totally different from her chef heroes. There is light-heartedness (at least on the outside) to him, a sense of easy-going and good humour which was a nice change from her more angsty, introverted heroes before. He has issues of his own, finding a place for personal life, settling down after years in the military and still doing undercover work was not easy for him but it was something he desperately wanted. 

Vi was fabulous, I had so much fun reading her. We rarely see a strong independent heroine who still remains such after she falls in love. The chemistry between Vi and Chase was strong but neither of them was good at being with someone, at sharing happiness and sorrow. Being part of a couple was not their usual place but they had strong feelings for each other and tried their best to make things work. And the did, in the end, after more than the usual turmoil.

There is a strong suspense element in their story, partly because of Chase's profession, partly as a reflection of the current events in the real world - the overwhelming sense of uncertainly and lack of safety. 

I felt the pace a bit uneven - at times the characters spent too much time talking/discussing things rather than acting them out and then there was a fast action-packed sequence but overall this is just a minor quibble.

I loved the easy banter between Vi and Chase, the sense of fun and good times despite the dangers in the outside world. I felt very strongly present in this story the message the French people send to the world after the terrorist attacks in Paris - we are not giving up on life, love, good times because of you. We are not afraid. And I very much liked how this was incorporated in the story.

In short, Chase Me is different than your usual Laura Florand romance but it is also the same - intense, beautifully written with well-developed unique characters and passionate romance. And of course, there is all the love for cooking and eating and entertaining. A recommended read!

Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / Kobo / iBooks / 

Contemporary Romance

Review: A Wish Upon Jasmine by Laura Florand

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Title: A Wish Upon Jasmine (La Vie en Roses #2)
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemproary romance
Release Date: 1 August 2015

Author's links:
Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
My rating: 4 Stars

Add on Goodreads
Synopsis

Ruthless. That was what they said about Damien Rosier. Handsome. Wealthy. Powerful. Merciless. No one messed with his family, because to do so they would have to get through him. No one thought he had a heart. Not even the woman he gave his to.

Cynical. That was what they said about Jasmin Bianchi. A top perfumer of her generation, Jess had achieved commercial success by growing a protective shell over a tender heart. The one time she cracked it open to let Damien in, he crushed it—after a night of unbelievable passion.

Lovers. That one magical night couldn’t survive the harsh light of dawn. When Jess woke up to discover the man in bed beside her had stolen her company, she fled.

Enemies. Now she’s come to the south of France with a threat to his family heritage. If he wants to reclaim both it and the woman who walked away from him, he’s going to have to fight as dirty as only Damien can.

But Jess knows how to fight dirty, too. And these days, she has nothing left to lose.

Certainly not her heart.

Review 

Laura Florand is one my favourite authors and I find her Amour et Chocolate series just delicious! This is book 2 in her new series, La Vie en Rose which take us in the world of high French perfemury. Book 1 was the perfect romance - a fairytale story of love, trust - very sensuos, very beautifully written

This is the story of one of the five cousins in the Rosier family - Damien - the business shark, the ruthless one who always achieves his goals. And the somewhat lonely and lost, perfume maker Jasmine (Jess). On the surface their story was very much similar to Matt and Layla's story from book 1 and it bothered me a lot initially. It felt like we have already been there, we have seen how this develops and comes to a HEA. But then Ms Florand turned things in a new direction.

I loved the cahracter of Damien and how he developed through the story. His internal cononflict was so strong and I could understand him so well. He was constantly battling expectations of everyone in his family had of him and his vision of himself. He felt obliged to perform a certain role in the family and he did it because this was his forte and he loved his family and wanted to care for them. Yet (he thought) they all saw him as ruthless, heartless and in fact he just felt too much, was as emotional and vulnerable as anyone else. He was a romantic at heart trying to do the right thing for everybody no matter what it cost him. There was so much going on with him.

Damien and Jasmine had had an affair/one-night stand before that ended in a lot of hurt and misunderstanding. I was not a big fan of basing the conflict of the story on miscommuniation though it was fitting to the characters, at least for Damien. Jasmine family situaiton aslo very much explained her distrust and jumping to conclusions. None of them had an easy time opening up about their true emotions, both were scared of revealing too much.

The process of perfume making had an improtant role in the story and I loved how the author used this metaphore to explore the characters' inner worlds.

Overall, this is another additon to a fabulous new series by a favourite author. A recommended read for fans of romance - sensual, powerful, life-changing!

Purchase Links: Amazon / B&N / iTunes / Kobo

Friday Favourites

Friday Favoruites # 13: Laura Florand

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Today's guest at Friday Favourites is the amazing Ms Laura Florand. She writes sensual romantic stories with complex characters exploring their emotions and desires set in the wolrd of top French chocolatiers. Her new series takes us to French rose valleys, La Vie En Roses, and the romance is just as delightful.


Friday Favourites


1. Favourite place 
I honestly have far too many to choose one. I love Paris, and many special places in it, the Seine at night, the special chocolate shops, the Luxembourg Gardens. And I love the south of France, where I’m setting the Vie en Roses series. I think you can tell both of those loves from the books! But I really love to travel, so there are also many other places I love—in Spain, in Italy, in Tahiti, in the U.S., in Belgium—that are beautiful and special but don’t make it into the books.

2. Favourite food and drink
That one is easy for me! Chocolate, of course. Very, very good chocolate!

3. Favourite music/genre/artist/song
I’m not entirely sure I have one. My playlists change so much according to mood or what I’m doing. (You want different music for a long plane ride than you do for a run or the gym, for example.) Let’s see—if people are looking for French music, I really like Zaz. That rough voice and jazz-rich music. “Je veux” and “La Fée” would be my suggestions for first songs to listen to from her.

4. Favourite movie/TV series
I usually do poorly with TV series. They drive me crazy. But one very brief series, which I loved and hope will be renewed, is Agent Carter. Very, very well done, much better than Agents of SHIELD, which, alas, I only managed to get 5 episodes into before it started making me too crazy. (I know, I know—everyone loves it. I’m sorry! My tastes are often weird.)

But for favorite movie? I am going to have to admit that it is, of course, Star Wars, like I think many of my generation. That was the second movie I ever saw in an actual theater—our father took us to exactly five movies as children, Snow White, Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and a French movie which I don’t remember well, but I believe he regretted it, because there was nudity beyond my years. 

For older films—some of the animated films that have come out in the past ten years or so are incredible. One of my standout favorites of those is actually Lilo and Stitch for the relationship between Lilo and her sister, but Big Hero Six won a big place in my heart just a few months ago.

And I love black and white romantic movies with great dialogue, such as Bringing Up Baby.

5. Favourite hobby besides writing, if you consider writing a hobby
I definitely don’t consider writing a hobby. It’s a full-time career, and as I juggle two full-time careers right now, between writing and Duke, and have a small child, I often feel I don’t have any time left for hobbies.

The closest thing might be exercise-related. I used to do a lot of dance (I co-led a semi-professional dance group, in fact) and then triathlons and now weight-lifting. I’m not sure if hobby is quite the right word for any of those, as they’re pretty demanding, but the physical exercise helps me a lot with stress and balance, which is one of my challenges right now.

I do love to travel, though, and travel a lot. And I love food, so one of my hobbies is actually searching out all kinds of new foodie places, particularly chocolate, and trying them. 

Favourite books
It is very hard for me to answer this question. I have so many books that I love. I’m going to just look at my iPad, where my Kindle app is set to organize books by most recent reads, and tell you the last five books I read that I really loved. They’re in all kinds of genres!

1) Dorothy Sayers’ Gaudy Night and Busman’s Holiday. (Strong Poison starts the Lord Peter Wimsey/Harriet Vane arc, so a new reader needs to start there, as it’s the whole arc that interests me, but the last two were the best.) I had never read these, and people had recommended them to me frequently, and it’s true—they’re wonderful books.

2) Laura Kinsale’s Flowers from the Storm. (A re-read for our course we taught on the Romance Novel at Duke. I love Kinsale’s writing so much.)

3) Sage Blackwood’s Jinx and sequels. This is a middle grade fantasy, and it’s just delightful—the main character, the setting, the author’s use of language. I highly recommend it!

4) Ilona Andrews’ On the Edge. Another re-read, also for our course. Ilona Andrews (or Ilona and Gordon together) write such fantastic stories. I recommend anything they write. 

5) Terry Pratchett’s I Shall Wear Midnight. Also a re-read. I went on a re-reading stint of Terry Pratchett’s books after his death—it just consoled me to know I could always read his books—and so the next ten recommended reads after this would be just more of his books. I Shall Wear Midnight is the last book about Tiffany Aching, one of my favorite characters. (I strongly recommend that everyone read Pratchett’s books about Granny Weatherwax and then go on to Tiffany. The books about the witches are works of wit and art.)

Those are my most recent stand-out reads! What about the rest of you? What are you reading right now? What do you recommend?

Thanks so much for inviting me to join you, Elena, and thanks to all of you for reading! I’d love to learn some of your favorites, too.

*** *** ***

About the author

Laura Florand is the international bestselling and award-winning author of fifteen books, including the Paris Hearts series (All for You) and the Amour et Chocolat series (The Chocolate Thief) where sexy Parisian chocolatiers woo the women they love with what they love best – romance you can taste. Her books have appeared in ten languages, been nominated for RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Book of the Year, received the RT Seal of Excellence and starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal, and been recommended by USA Today, NPR, and The Wall Street Journal. 



She was born in Georgia, but the travel bug bit her early. After a Fulbright year in Tahiti, a semester in Spain, and backpacking everywhere from New Zealand to Greece, she ended up living in Paris, where she met and married her own handsome Frenchman, a story told in her first book Blame It on Paris. Now a lecturer at Duke University, she is very dedicated to her research into French chocolate. For a glimpse behind the scenes of some of that research as well as recommendations for US chocolate, make sure to check out her website: www.lauraflorand.com.




*** *** ***
Laura Florand's latest release is A Wish Upon Jasmine, book 2 in her La Vie En Roses series. This time we follow the fates of a family of French perfume makers in the Valley of roses/jasmine near Grasse, France. I'm just finishing the book and will review it shortly. 

Synopsis

Ruthless. That was what they said about Damien Rosier. Handsome. Wealthy. Powerful. Merciless. No one messed with his family, because to do so they would have to get through him. No one thought he had a heart. Not even the woman he gave his to.

Cynical. That was what they said about Jasmin Bianchi. A top perfumer of her generation, Jess had achieved commercial success by growing a protective shell over a tender heart. The one time she cracked it open to let Damien in, he crushed it—after a night of unbelievable passion.

Lovers. That one magical night couldn’t survive the harsh light of dawn. When Jess woke up to discover the man in bed beside her had stolen her company, she fled.

Enemies. Now she’s come to the south of France with a threat to his family heritage. If he wants to reclaim both it and the woman who walked away from him, he’s going to have to fight as dirty as only Damien can.

But Jess knows how to fight dirty, too. And these days, she has nothing left to lose.

Certainly not her heart.

Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / iTunes / Kobo



Favourites

Review: All for You by Laura Florand

01:11

Title: All for You (Paris Hearts #1)
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemproary romance, chocolatiers, Paris
Release Date: 5 May 2015

Author's links:
Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
Add on Goodreads

My rating: 4.5 Stars



Synopsis


Some crushes aren’t meant to be

When her older brother’s best friend left to join the Foreign Legion, eighteen-year-old Célie moved on to make a life for herself as a Paris chocolatier. Now, five years later, the last thing she needs is another man to mess up her happiness.

Let alone the same man.

But five years in the Foreign Legion is a long time for a man to grow up, and a long time to be away from the woman he loves.

Especially when he did it all for her.

Half strangers, more than friends, and maybe, if Joss Castel has his way, a second chance.

Review


This story is another winner for Ms Florand. I'm addicted to her writing, it's so rich and sensual, telling tender and passionate love stories.

This is book 1  in her new series, Paris Hearts, featuring female chefs. These books are sort of spin off of her Amour et Chocolat series. All for You tells the story of Celie, who is a chief chocolatier in Dominic Richard's shop (from The Chocolate Touch) and Joss!

It's a tale of second chance of love, a story of growing up. Both Celie and  Joss are young and passionate, a bit stubborn and ultimately meant to be together. She is 23 and her is 26 but they have overcome so much. Celie has had a crush on Joss since she was a teenage girl and he broke her heart when he left her and joined the Foreign Legion when she was 18.

I enjoyed the compelxity of their relationship, the constant push-and-pull and efforts they made to get together. There was a lot of growth for them both, especially for Joss who had this static image of Celie as a young, somewhat naive princess he felt he had to woo her, to take care and protect, to make himself worthy of her. In fact, in his 5-year absence she had grown into her own person, had become a successful chocolatier, a young women with a social circle of her own. 

The conflict between them is more than a simple misunderstanding. They seem to have completely opposite views on life. Ms Florand, like in her other novels, plays skilfully with traditional fairytale expectations/tropes to create a heart-warming contemporary romantic story. 

I liked how Dom and Jaime helped the younger couple find the path to being together. Dom was his grumpy, growling self and it was ironic and too funny to see him giving relationship advise. I'm excited to read the short story about him and Jaime which Ms Florand has included in her latest newsletter. 

It's one of the best books of the year for me so far, together with Ms Florand previous release, Once Upon a Rose which is book 1 in yet another new series! Recommended read for anyone who loves romance!

Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / Kobo


My reviews of other titles by Laura Florand:

Cover Reveal

Cover Reveal for All of You by Laura Florand

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RT Magazine calls her works “silky and addictive”, nominating Florand for Best Book of the Year, Publishers Weekly says they’re “decadent”, and Library Journal says they’re as “sexy and flirtatious as… poignant and caring”. Now international bestselling author Laura Florand brings you her sexiest, sweetest romance to date: All for You.

PARIS HEARTS: A new series from Laura Florand 
Three young women trying to make their way in the most romantic city on Earth must learn how to open their hearts to love. 


ALL FOR YOU (Paris Hearts Book 1)
Synopsis

 Some crushes aren’t meant to be
When her older brother’s best friend left to join the Foreign Legion, eighteen-year-old Célie moved on to make a life for herself as a Paris chocolatier. Now, five years later, the last thing she needs is another man to mess up her happiness.

Let alone the same man.

But five years in the Foreign Legion is a long time for a man to grow up, and a long time to be away from the woman he loves.
Especially when he did it all for her.

Half strangers, more than friends, and maybe, if Joss Castel has his way, a second chance…

Coming May 5, 2015! 
Add to Goodreads


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Laura Florand burst on the contemporary romance scene in 2012 with her award-winning Amour et Chocolat series. Her international bestselling books have appeared in ten languages, been named among the Best Books of the Year by Romantic Times and Barnes & Noble, received the RT Seal of Excellence and starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist, and been recommended by NPR, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal, among others. 

After a Fulbright year in Tahiti and backpacking everywhere from New Zealand to Greece, and several years living in Madrid and Paris, Laura now teaches Romance Studies at Duke University. Contrary to popular opinion, this means she primarily teaches French language and culture and does a great deal of research on French gastronomy, particularly chocolate. For more information, please see her website: www.lauraflorand.com

*** *** ***

As a big fan of Ms Florand's books I've read and reviewed quite a few of them. Here are the links to my reviews, if you are curious to check them out:

The Chocolate Touch (Amour et Chocolat #4) - 3.5 Stars
The Chocolate Heart (Amour et Chocolat #5) - 4.5 Stars
Shadowed Heart (Amour et Chocolat #5.5) - 3.5 Stars
The Chocolate Temptation (Amour et Chocolat #6) - 4 Stars
Snow-Kissed (Snow Queen #1) - 5 Stars
Sun-Kissed (Snow Queen #2) - 3.5 Stars


Alexis Hall

Recommended Reads: February 2015

07:51

February, despite being the shortest month, is always the hardest for me emotionally and physically to some extend. I'm tired of the cold and snow and winter depression and by the end of it I'm desperate for spring, sunshine and new things. Despite some lows, it was a good month in terms of the books I read.



Just like the previous month, in February I also had two Recommended books and 2 Honourable mentions.

Recommended Reads



Genre/Themes: Contemporary romance, France, roses
Read my review
Add on Goodreads
Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / iTunes / Kobo

I love Ms Florand's Amour et Chocolat series and this book is the first in a new spin-off series, set in France and telling the stories of a family making rose oil. It\s the perfect fairy tale romance 
while keeping things real and easy to relate too. The writing is sensual and rich 
and there is this highly entertaining play with popular romantic tropes. 



Genre/Themes: Contemporary m/m romance, Novella
Read my review
Add on Goodreads
Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / Riptide / Kobo

Alexis Hall seems destined to make my Recommended Reads list every time he publishes a new book. This is a quiet, understated story about the possibility of new beginning (that happens by chance at a time of floods). It's beautifully written, a bit yet, but ultimately hopeful. 
And what I loved most about it is how real it felt.

Honourable Mentions



Genre/Themes: New Adult, romance, college
Read my review
Add on Goodreads
Purchase links:  Amazon / B & N / Kobo / iBooks

I've become very picky about the NA romance I read and I was hesitant about this one but ended up loving it. The premise is not really unique but the story flows easily and it's fun to read. Great characters with hot chemistry and a ton of humour. Recommended light, sexy read!


Genre/Themes: Contemporary romance
Review to come 
Add on Goodreads
Purchase links: iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, Nook

I love Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series but Books 1 and 1.5 in her contemporary series were good but not awesome as I expected. This one worked much better for me. I loved everything about this story - the hero and the heroine, the slow development of their relationship, the way they dealt with their issues. And it can be read pretty much as a standalone since we just tiny glimpses of Charlotte in book 1 and even less of Gabriel.



Favourites

Review: Once Upon a Rose by Laura Florand

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Title: Once Upon a Rose (La Vie en Roses #1)
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemproary romance
Release Date: 26 January 2015

Author's links:
Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

My rating: 5 Stars

Add on Goodreads


Synopsis

She stole his roses.

Fleeing the spotlight, burnt out rock star Layla—“Belle”—Dubois seeks refuge in the south of France. That old, half-forgotten heritage in a valley of roses seems like a good place to soothe a wounded heart. She certainly doesn’t expect the most dangerous threat to her heart to pounce on her as soon as she sets foot on the land.

He wants them back.

Matt didn’t mean to growl at her quite that loudly. But—his roses! She can’t have his roses. Even if she does have all those curls and green eyes and, and, and…what was he growling about again?

Or maybe he just wants her.

When an enemy invades his valley and threatens his home, heart, and livelihood, Matthieu Rosier really knows only one way to defend himself.

It might involve kissing.

Review

This was a truly beautifully written love story that was a pure pleasure to read. I couldn't put it down and finished in 2 days despite my desire to savour every word, every emotion it brought to life. I almost never reread stories but I'd love to go back to this one at some point. There are so many layers to this story that I'm sure I've missed some the first time round and I’d only be to happy to find them.

I'm a big fan of Laura Florand and her Amour et Chocolat series  is one my favourite romances. Once Upon a Rose is the first book in a spin-off series focusing on a dynasty of producers of rose oil in the South of France. It is the most perfect, romantic and tender love story I’ve read lately. Everything in it worked perfectly for me.

Ms Florand has this distinctive rich style of writing, very sensual, very detail oriented. I particularly like how she weaves elements of traditional fairy tales in her romances and they don't feel like an addition but rather are an intrinsic part of the story. She skilfully plays with stereotypes and expectations, with traditional roles.

Layla was a interesting character - she is of mixed origin (French/Lebanese), a free-roaming musician in search of her inspiration back and (more importantly, though she comes to this realisation only gradually in the course of the story) a place to belong to. Matt was her total opposite in many way - he was part of the land, his valley defined him but it was aslo smothering him, just as her non-stop travelling was killing her artistic self.

Matt and Layla's romance swept them off their feet in a matter of days and was at true love at first sight. It's was magical, a story of a princess and her knight, though with a sense of humour and enough dose of reality to keep it grounded and prevent it from being too sweet. Their story was a beautiful journey of self-discovery and of learning who you are and who you can be. The struggle between their heart's desires and their words/actions was very intense, sometimes sad, oftenimes funny and most certainly honest and intimate. 

I liked Layla but Matt stole my heart. He was like a big teddy bear (the bear analogy runs strongly throughout the story and I loved it). He hides a tender heart behind his growls and he, can you believe it, he blushes, this big, dark, who scolds and growls all the time, actulally blushes. How cute is that! Layla didn't stand a chance against that just as he didn't have a chance against a petite girl with big eyes and masses of curls who wore her heart on her sleeve for everyone to see.

Ms Florand also gives us a great set of supporting characters set of characters who helped give the story a strong sense of place. There was a lot of focus on the importance of family in all its forms and complexities. I loved the Rosiers cousins, Tante Collette and grandpere Pepe were amazing as well. Can't wait for the next story in the series.

Another element which mades this book stand out is the many layers the author add the love story - subtle presence of history of the French Resistance, the issue of what makes a family, the freedom the be yourself and the need to have someone stand by your side and to be able to share your world with them, the burden of obligations and expectation. 

A fantastic read that I can't praise enough. Even this early in the year, I can honestly say that this will be one the Top Reads of 2015 for me! Now I'm going to read rest of the series - Raoul's story (part of the No Place Like Home Anthology) and the prequel novella, Turning Up the Heat (Daniel and Leah) and The Chocolate Rose (Gabriel and Jolie) which is actually book 3 in the Amour et Chocolat series. 

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Review: Shadowed Heart by Laura Florand

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Title: Shadowed Heart: A Luc and Summers Novel
(Amour et Chocolat #5.5)
Author: Laura Florand
Date of publication: 3 Dec 2014
Genre/Themes: Romance, French chocolatiers

Author's links: Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
Add to Goodreads

My rating: 3.5 stars


Synopsis

Three words, to shake a man’s existence.

Three words, to call on all a man’s strength, all his courage, all his love, and all his ability to hope and dream…and trust.

Three words, to wake up every fear a man has ever had.

“I’m pregnant, Luc.”

Now how could a man be perfect enough for that?

Romantic Times calls Laura Florand's writing "sensuous and sumptuous", awarding her their Seal of Excellence and nominating her for Best Book of the Year, and NPR says it's "explosive, sensual . . . and utterly sweet".

Now in this sequel to The Chocolate Heart, Florand takes us into the heart of happily ever after with a story full of love, hope, and friendship. Struggling to get their new restaurant off the ground in the south of France, newly married top chef Luc Leroi and his wife Summer must face all their demons at the prospect of becoming parents. Fortunately, Summer's cousins and Luc's rival chefs join forces with the couple to prove that not even a top chef has to handle everything alone and happiness really can last ever after. 

Review

Note: The blurb is rather vague and I'm afraid I won't be able to avoid some minor spoilers in my review. Furthermore, this is sequel to The Chocolate Heart, and I will be refering to some events and characters from that novel as well. 

I like romances about married couples especially ones involving pregnancy/children and I was excited to read this one. Luc and Summer are one my favourite couples in the series and I was happy that Ms Florand decided to continue their story after the Happily ever after.

We get the typical sensual and beautiful writing which is characteristic of Ms Florand's novels. The story flows gently, a bit slow at times, and it's overflowing with emotions as the characters struggle to keep up with the changes in their lives. 

Luc and Summer are trying to set up their new life as a married couple in Provence when an unexpected but very much wanted pregnancy adds yet another level of stress and anxiety to both of them. Both Luc and Summer have far too many issues/insecurities to deal with and as their natural reaction, they withdrew deep into themselves instead of talking. Their confusion, fears and deep desire to be there for each other and to be perfect parents (when neither of them had good role models for parenting) felt authentic and was easy to understandand relate to. Yet, I got frustrated with them for not taking to time to talk to each other. 

Even after they began opening more to each other, I felt that the big conflict came about because of a simple misunderstanding that could have been easily avoided.  

We see the whole gang of the Cade sisters and their French chocolatiers, Patrick and Sarah and some other chefs as well. A true of support for the new expecting couple. I enjoyed how the seriousness of the concerns of raising a child was coupled with lighthearted humor and sense of silent/unobtrusive camaraderie. Of course, much of the focus was on food which is generally a strong and ever present metaphor in this series. 

And the ending was perfect, full of optimism and totally looking forward to the future. I appreciate how Ms Florand didn't belittle or swept away the challenges in a perfect HEA. There will be struggles ahead for Summer and Luc, yet finally they are ready to face them together and to rely on the support of the people who care about them. 

I expected the story to cover a longer period and I was surprised that it was condensed in such a short time span. I was looking forward to seeing the couple further along in their family life. After thinking it over I realized that I had started this story with certain fixed assumptions related to the unexpected pregnancy trope in romance and while they were not (fully) met, I found the story enjoyable and refreshing. The depth of feelings and the way the character deal/fail to deal with their complex issues made a very engaging story. A recommended read for fans of the series!

Purchase link: Amazon

Laura Florand

Waiting on Wednesday: Shadowed Heart by Laura Florand

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Waiting on Wednesday is a book meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and it features books that we are eagerly awaiting to be released.

Title: Shadowed Heart: A Luc and Summers Novel
Author: Laura Florand
Genre/Themes: Contemporary romance, Paris, Chocolatiers

Release Date: 3 Dec 2014

Add on Goodreads

Synopsis

Three words, to shake a man’s existence.

Three words, to call on all a man’s strength, all his courage, all his love, and all his ability to hope and dream…and trust.

Three words, to wake up every fear a man has ever had.

“I’m pregnant, Luc.”

Now how could a man be perfect enough for that?


Author’s note: This book occurs in the early days of the marriage of Luc and Summer, the couple in THE CHOCOLATE HEART. I don't recommend reading it without having read THE CHOCOLATE HEART.

*** *** ***

 Why am I waiting for this? - I love the Amour et Chocolat series by Laura Florand and The Choclate Heart is one of my favourite stories. This is continuation of Summer and Luc's story as they start a family and I'm excited to see them again. This series of contemporary romance stories involving sexy, brooding French chocolatiers, is perfect for the fans of emotional love stories deftly told in a truly beautiful writing style. 

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Review: Sun-Kissed by Laura Florand

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Title: Sun-Kissed (Snow Queen #2)
Author: Laura Florand
Date of publication: 5 May 2014
Genre: Romance / Older couple

Author's links: Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
Purchase links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Kobo / Itunes

My rating: 3.5 stars


Synopsis

They called her the Ice Queen.

Anne Winters. Self-made billionaire. Household name. Divorced single mom. Convicted felon. She didn’t let anyone or anything get to her. No one was allowed to breach the walls around her heart except for her own son. She had only one trusted friend: her vacation house neighbor. They’d been walking the beach together for twenty years. Not that this gave him access to her heart, of course…

They called him a man who got what he wanted.

Mack Corey. Self-made billionaire. Dominant world player. Widowed father of the bride. No felony convictions yet, although his daughters had come close. He’d transformed his family company into one of the top 500 by the age of thirty. He’d raised two daughters who dumped him for idiot arrogant French chocolatiers and went off to live in Paris. Hell, he even managed to tolerate his dad. But that Ice Queen act Anne Winters had going was really starting to get to him…

They’d been friends for twenty years. Could they become lovers?

Could a frozen heart be kissed by the sun?

Review

This is the second book in Snow Queen series but can be read as standalone. It tells the story of love at an older age which is not a very common topic in romance novels I have to say. I haven't read anything similar before and while overall, I did enjoy it, I didn't love it as much as the other works of Ms Florand I've read.

The main characters here are Anne Winters, Kurt's mother from Snow-Kissed and Mack Corey, the father of the Corey sisters from the Amour et Chocolate series. What I like most in this story is that get to see all the couples from the previous books coming together of Dom and Jaime'wedding and they are all very happy and very much in love. 

Part of Anne and Mack's story is told in overheard conversations between the other couples. I didn't particularly like this device - eavesdropping to learn more about a character to an event, but still it added a nice outside perspective on the hero and the heroine (it was mostly her overhearing things). Ms Florand drew interesting parallel lines between the love stories of the younger couples and the coming together of Anne and Mack. 

There was a lot of love and joy in this story, mixed with some melancholy and regret. Both Anne and Mack suffered to some extend the empty nest syndrome. It was a newer and unpleasant feeling for him in particular. His daughters were moving away to Paris with their husbands and suddenly the only person he felt connected to, apart from his father, and who remained physically close to him was Anne. And then he knew he would do anything to keep her, even risk their 20-year old friendship. Like most of Ms Florand's other heroes, Mac had to win Anne, he had to conquer her, to break her carefully built walls and practically steal her heart. 

This story of conquest and surrender, of giving in and opening up to love was told in the sensually rich and exquisite writing style of Ms Florand. She carefully mixed together fairytale elements and characters such as
Prince Charming, the Snow Queen, princesses and towers with the everyday mundane reality of life - building multimillion dollar empires, buying houses all over the world and turning them into homes, going to prison.

It's my first time reading romance featuring older characters and I couldn't really connect with them. What bothered me the most was that they had been friends for 20 years and despite having more than friendly feelings for each other, it took them so long to be together. For two ambitious, competitive and very successful people it seemed strange to be so hesitant to act on their feelings. 

Still, it's a beautiful love story exquisitely presented. I'd recommend it to all fans of Ms Florand and to all lovers of romance in general.

My reviews of other books by Laura Florand:
The Chocolate Touch (Amour et Chocolat #4)
The Chocolate Heart (Amour et Chocolat #5)
The Chocolate Temptations (Amour et Chocolat #6)
Snow-Kissed (Snow Queen #1)

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Review: Snow-Kissed by Laura Florand

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Title: Snow-Kissed (Snow Queen #1)
Author: Laura Florand
Date of publication: 1 Sept 2013
Genre: Romance / Novella  /Angst

Author's links:Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
Purchase links: Amazon / B&N / Kobo / iBooks

My rating: 5 stars



 Synopsis

Florand takes us to a snow-kissed Christmas cabin for this heart-wrenching tale of love, loss, forgiveness—and hope. After the utter destruction of her marriage and her happiness, Kai knew it was better to shut herself away from the world than to hurt and be hurt. Holed up in her mountain cabin, she planned to spend her Christmas alone. Until her not-quite-ex-husband shows up as the first flakes start to fall. Now should she send him back out into the cold? Or can she be brave enough to let this winter snow bind them back together?
Review

This is a novella that can be read as a standalone or as the first book of the Snow Queen series. I'm currently reading book 2, Sun-kissed which released on May 11.

I knew from the blurb that it would be about a marriage in trouble and I love this trope in romance but I haven't read many books dealing with it so far. What I didn't know was the cause of the marriage troubles. It touched me on a very personal level and the story as whole affected me deeply. 

The story is told in the careful, sensual style of writing of Ms Florand that we know from her other works. What sets this story apart is the profound sadness and pain. Kai's (the heroine) sense of guilt, her inability to deal with the tragedy which struck her marriage was overwhelming.

It a story of two people who love each other very much and who are trying to find the way back to each other after experiencing the worst kind of pain and loss. They are lost in a world of snow and work slowly to rediscover the possibility for Christmas joy and most importantly, hope for the future. Kai and Kurt reconnect first physically presented in exquisitely sensual and intense love scenes. Their true coming together involved some painful confessions and ultimately forgiveness. Kai and Kurt rediscover their love, why and how they love each other. 

Despite the short format of the book, we see real growth and development of the characters - the time apart has changed them both and this change makes it possible for them to be together again. Things cannot go back to the way they were before, their loss is irreversible but they can try to find something new and good for them both.

I fell so in love with the characters that I didn't really want their story to end. Since Ms Florand doesn't give us a definite HEA or an epilogue, I wrote one for myself in my head and it's beautiful and magical, just what Kai and Kurt deserve.

I had a minor issue with the names, not liking either Kai or Kurt but when the review in Dear Author brought to  may attention the connection with the Snow Queen fairytale and Kai, the boy with the piece of glass in his eye and in his heart making him unable to love, it all made sense. I can't believe I missed the connection and I've been listening to the Bulgarian audio of the fairytale these days with my daughter, I'm truly absent-minded these days. This adds yet another dimension to a story which is already complex and multi-layered. 

This is one of my favourite books of Ms Florand and one of the best I've read this year. I can recommend it to everyone but beware it will break your heart before putting it back together.

My reviews of other books by Laura Florand:
The Chocolate Touch (Amour et Chocolat #4)
The Chocolate Heart (Amour et Chocolat #5)
The Chocolate Temptations (Amour et Chocolat #6)

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Teaser Tuesday 59

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Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Here are the rules:
• Grab your current read 
• Open to a random page 
• Share two (2) or a few more “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

My teaser this week comes for Snow-kissed (Snow Queen #1), a novella by Laura Florand. I'm a fan of this author and loved this book very much, probably the most of everything I've read by her. It's full of guilt and pain, yet there a lot of love and eventually a hope for the future is born, all this wrapped in a very beautiful and sensual writing style.
"... Tears dampened her eyes as she imagined him as daffodils - such a funny image for his athletically geeky carefulness and controlled masculinity - and yet it suited him somehow. Stubborn, persistent, determined to get through the snow."
Synopsis

Florand takes us to a snow-kissed Christmas cabin for this heart-wrenching tale of love, loss, forgiveness—and hope. After the utter destruction of her marriage and her happiness, Kai knew it was better to shut herself away from the world than to hurt and be hurt. Holed up in her mountain cabin, she planned to spend her Christmas alone. Until her not-quite-ex-husband shows up as the first flakes start to fall. Now should she send him back out into the cold? Or can she be brave enough to let this winter snow bind them back together?

Feature

Teaser Tuesday 44

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Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Here are the rules:

• Grab your current read 
• Open to a random page 
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page 
• Be careful not the include spoilers! 
• Share the title & author so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers. 

I have modified them slightly for my Teasers. It will not be two sentences from a random page but two, usually more, sentences from the pages I have read so far that have struck me as most interesting, original or that I just happen to like a lot.

This week's teaser comes from The Chocolate Temptation by Laura Florand (my review). It book 6 in her Amour et Chocolat series and I have read the last three and really enjoyed them a lot. They are all tender and very sensual romantic stories of troubled French chocolatiers meeting, courting and winning some fabulous American women. 

The Chocolate Temptation can be read as a standalone but I'd recommend that you read The Chocolate Heart (my review) before that since it's there that we meet Patrick and Sarah for the first time and the stories in these two books take place parallel to one another. 

" Her heart hiccuped at that word you, pronounced as if it was some glorious prize. As if no more wondrous prize could even exist. "I'm not ... I'm not Cinderella?""

 The Chocolate Temptation - Laura Florand
Goodreads Blurb

She hated him.
Patrick Chevalier. The charming, laid-back, golden second-in-command of the Paris pastry kitchen where Sarah worked as intern, who made everything she failed at seem so easy, and who could have every woman he winked at falling for him without even trying. She hated him, but she’d risked too much for this dream to give up on it and walk out just so he wouldn’t break her heart.

But he didn’t hate her.
Sarah Lin. Patrick’s serious, dark-haired American intern, who looked at him as if she could see right through him and wasn’t so impressed with what she saw. As her boss, he knew he should leave her alone. The same way he knew better than to risk his heart and gamble on love.

But he was never good at not going after what – or who – he wanted.

He could make magic out of sugar. But could he mold hate into love?


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